The Former Swordmaster Who Pretends to Be the Worst, and the School’s Top-Ranked Chairman’s Daughter Who’s Way Too Sweet in Public, It’s a Real Problem
“Who on earth are you!?”
“I’m Takanashi Azusa! I’m Aragaki’s true rival!!”
“Don’t tell me you’re actually challenging me!?”
Takanashi Azusa is a “standout” figure in a different way from Rika.
While her grades are at the very bottom—a stark contrast to my childhood friend, who is considered out of reach—she is strikingly beautiful and serves as the school’s mascot.
In short, she was like an “idol.”
Some even call her a carefree angel who descended upon this cutthroat, meritocracy-driven school.
“What do you mean!? I’m Aragaki’s rival! I was here first, you know!?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. You’re not worthy of Saito! Step aside and let me have him!!”
She and Edward, the son of a famous magical family, were fighting over me.
Right in the middle of Class A—where the school’s top students gather—they were shouting at each other without a care for who might be watching. Naturally, the classmates around them were buzzing with curiosity, and some were whispering among themselves.
Even amidst the commotion, those whispers somehow reached my ears—
“Why are Edward and Takanashi-chan fighting over Aragaki…!?”
“I don’t know, but I liked Takanashi-chan first!!”
“No way… Why does that underachiever always get all the good stuff…!?”
—Me, Aragaki Saito, the representative of the underachievers, sandwiched between a handsome guy and a beautiful girl.
There were voices of envy not only from many male students but also from a certain group of female students. From the outside, I’m probably in the kind of dream position everyone would want. But in reality, I felt exactly the opposite.
Please, I don’t want to stand out any more than I already do.
All I want is a peaceful life where no one bothers me.
“So you know what Aragaki always orders at the cafeteria!?”
“W-well, I don’t know that… but do you know what Saito’s physical abilities are!?”
“Of course not! Even so, I’m the one who understands Aragaki best!”
“That can’t be true! I’m his rival—I’m the one who understands him!!”
It felt as though my own wish was crumbling away, fragile and loud.
No one could stop it now. I’d never experienced such a situation where I was surrounded on all sides, not even back in the other world. I’d had my share of arguments with friends, but they’d never been about this kind of thing, and as the one caught in the middle, there was no way for me to mediate.
As I was thinking that, my childhood friend sitting next to me—
“Cut it out already. You’re making Saito-kun uncomfortable, aren’t you?”
—With a sharp, decisive tone.
With a voice so clear it felt refreshing, she reprimanded us both.
Rika’s profile looked dignified and dependable. She truly lived up to her reputation as the school’s “unattainable beauty”—the chairman’s daughter with the top grades, whom everyone admired and looked up to.
If anyone could put a stop to this worst-case scenario…
It might just be her, the one with more influence than anyone else
“…Rika!”
For a helpless guy like me, my childhood friend—the person I knew better than anyone—was my last hope.
She was always an impressive presence, but right now, the girl named Rika seemed to be shining brighter than ever.
Finally, I’d be free.
Thinking that, I let out a sigh of relief.
But immediately after, she spoke up in a tone tinged with indignation.
“Is there any point in fighting over this…?”
With that intensely piercing gaze.
“Because I’m the only one who truly understands Saito-kun,” she said.
…Wait, Agatsuma-san, give me a break.
The girl I thought was my only ally turned out to be the most dangerous one of all. Admittedly, if she were told that while I—her childhood friend—was left out, Rika might feel resentful.
Even so, if she really understands me best, I wanted her to calm the two of them down right now!!
But the die has been cast.
Now that it’s come to this, no one can stop it anymore. The three of them glaring at each other, me staring at them with a pale face, and our classmates making a fuss because they don’t understand what’s going on.
The atmosphere was so tense it gave me a headache.
“Well, there’s nothing we can do now.”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
“I guess so.”
But it seemed the three of them had reached some sort of mutual understanding.
After each of them said that, they crossed their arms, nodded, and then—
“Saito-kun!”
“Saito!”
“Aragaki!”
“…………Yes?”
—They all turned to look at me at once.
And, in unison, they declared:
“Decide which one of us three is the best!!”
……It’s enough to make my head spin.
Come on, God, Buddha, and goddess of another world.
All I’m doing is praying for peace and safety—that’s all I want. Why do problems keep piling up like this, one after another?
I can’t think straight anymore.
Unable to reply, I just let out a wry smile and slumped my shoulders.
Maiban